Ice Cream Cart
by Foreteller Ava
Summary: They were her regular customers almost every day. It was unlikely that she wouldn't notice when things went wrong. [One Shot]


They were always there for ice cream. The same time every day, about an hour before closing. There were three of them, in black cloaks, always smiling and laughing.

"Yo, three sea salt ice creams." Ah there they were, right on schedule. She pulled out the neon blue ice cream bar, handing it to the man and he gave her a wave before heading over to his friends. The girl smiled. The boy waved to her as well. She gave them a smile and wave back, and the three of them were off.

* * *

This time, the younger boy was alone. It was an odd sight to see him without his two friends. She approached him, watching as he seemed a lot less sure. He did still come for the ice cream, but she decided to have a conversation. "Is everything alright, dear?"

The boy looked at the old woman, shaking his head. "Xion ran away, and Axel…" Those must've been the names of the other two. "Never mind, it's not important."

"Well dear, I promise things will work out between the two of you. Best friends always find a way to make it work in the end." She handed him the light blue ice cream pop. When he went to grab the munny to pay for it she held out her hand. "No need to pay me today. Hopefully it's a sign that your luck will turn around."

The smile he gave her definitely made the loss of money from the ice cream sale worth it.

* * *

For a while, things had been going well. The trio had started returning shortly after her conversation with the boy, all smiles and laughs and enjoying the ice cream much like they had many years ago. But today things were different. The man, Axel she presumed, had shown up, but only for one ice cream. Odd. "Only one?"

"Considering Roxas and Xion ran away, not like I have anybody else to buy for." Axel rubbed his hand through his hair, handing her the money. He went to take his seat but she stopped him from doing so.

"You may want to keep an eye on them, this isn't the first time at least one of them has left." She raised an eye brow, but he just sighed.

"Yeah, I know. But don't worry, don't think it'll be a problem for two much longer. Doubt they'll even be allowed back." Axel let out a bitter laugh. "If you see one of them, just make sure they stay safe." When he left, it seemed like he had a lot more he wanted to say.

The next time he came by, she'd make sure to ask him.

* * *

Three days later, the two had come back. Roxas and Xion, the younger two members of the trio had come, and Xion had bought the ice cream. She could tell by the voice it was Xion, but she kept her hood up. The old woman wanted to ask more, but the girl had kept her lips sealed. Unfortunate really, she was starting to get concerned for those children. Had they accidentally ended up in some form of cult?

"Dear, are you sure you don't want to tell me what's going on?" She asked. The girl shook her head.

"No, I'm alright. Thank you, for everything." With that Xion ran up to the clocktower. The old woman couldn't help shake the finality of that thanks. She was just being silly.

She started packing up her stand for the day when she heard somebody cry out and looked up for herself. She nearly let out a startled cry herself. Roxas was fighting something huge up there. Something terrifying. Was Xion alright if he was alone? What had happened. She quickly left the cart alone before racing up the clocktower as fast as her weak legs could carry her. She had to see what this monster was in front of the clocktower. But as she run, it was the oddest thing. She was starting to forget why she was running.

She knew it had something to do with Roxas and…and…it was slipping away. Her memory was bad, it had been growing bad in old age, but she still couldn't believe how little she remembered.

By the time she reached the top, Roxas was gone. And she wasn't entirely convinced that seeing him had been anything more than a dream.

* * *

About a week had passed since she'd last seen Axel and Roxas, and she was beginning to get concerned. Where were they? They always came for ice cream an hour before her cart closed, and suddenly that changed. She was surprised when Axel came here with a young blonde girl. "Two sea salt ice creams, please."

She went to get the ice creams, but stopped as she realized the question that was in her mind. "Where's Roxas?"

Axel seemed surprised that she remembered his friend, but shook his head. "Like I said last time I saw you, I didn't think he'd be coming back. He…"

"Roxas went back to where he belonged." The petite girl standing behind Axel had spoken up, and she seemed almost sad as she did. Had she known Roxas as well?

Something told her that comment wasn't as nice as it sounded, so the old woman didn't comment anything polite. "I hope you'll have a chance to see each other again. If he does return, tell him I'll have an ice cream bar ready for him a—' She stopped herself. Who else was she supposed to have ice cream for.

"Thanks, I'm hoping so too." Axel gave her a thumbs up before leading the young girl away.

That was the last time she had seen Axel as well.

* * *

It had been two years since she'd last seen the kids. Despite the fact that they never showed up, she'd kept them in her thoughts. They had been her most loyal customers, and their sudden disappearance was both a disappointment and a heart break. She'd always worried something had happened to them, but a part of her hoped that they were safe.

She started to pack up her cart, another day having closed when she heard a voice. "Yo." She glanced up, looking at a familiar red haired man, with two kids behind him. "We're not too late, are we?"

The old woman shook her head. "You're just in time." She smiled, pulling out three sea salt ice cream bars. "And don't worry about paying, dearie, these were made just for you all."

* * *

 **I saw a post about Days written through the view of the ice cream lady, or whoever sells these kids ice cream.**

 **Just a snippet into her thoughts.**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **-Foreteller Ava/Nicole Peach**


End file.
